Monday, July 24, 2006

Do the Cons have a foreign policy mandate?

While I sympathize with the point of view of NUPGE president, James Clancy, I have to take him to task on the claim that the problem with the Cons' foreign policy is that they have no "mandate" for it. Certainly, he's right that the Cons weren't given a majority, and hence have not been given sufficient trust by the electorate to pass whatever laws they feel like and govern however they want to. However. The electorate also put in place an Opposition -- the federal Liberals -- who are supposed to be acting as a check on the government's power. Indeed, insofar as the government is doing whatever the hell it wants, we can put at least partial blame on those who are supposed, but are failing, to oppose.